The Grenada gazette., 1887-06-18
THE pENITENTIARY RING.

n
which is trying to defraud the state
nut o $4,000. In the face of the pub
,ic record, no editor who ism q plant
zoo! Of the ring, or an unpardonabie
ipnoramus would ask such question
de will state few historical facts
and let the Republican and the public
,,;dge for themselves who the men
End their abettoas are who are enga-
sed in defrauding the State.
nusing the heat of the gubernato-
rial contest of 1885, when Lowry's
chances for re nomination We're way
asing in the balance, II. g. Fairman,
u the Jackson Lantern, published an
.gticle charging that the lessees of
t,le penitentiary were behind in their
accounts With the State many thous-
and dollars, and that Lowry was re-
sponsible for the delinquency. The
ssawing made By Fairman was as the
ezplasiop Of mighty bomb, and for
i tine the Lowry hosts staggered un-
dep II, However, in q personal card,
hearing date Of July 2lst, 1855, Jones
8, Hamilton and James A. Hoskins
esme to the Governors rescue. They
denounced Fairman as a "wanton,,
malicious and miserable liar and
saolpdrel'' and undertook to prove
That they had settled all their jndebt-
edness to the State up to December,
1884. Embodied in this card of Ham
jlton and Hnskins were certificates
from Ex-Attor-General Catchings.
superintendent Of the penitentiary,
f.. J.. McQuiston and Gen. Writ Ad
ams, certifying to the same fact, and
before the denunciation and such an
array Of political influence Fairman
Waadriven to the wall.
All this time the Governor, q much
Interested party, was mum, but time
rolled on, aud when his ExcelIency
had been reelected and was safe in
the gubernatorial chair for second
term, in his official message to the
legislature OF 1886 lsee message of that
dase), ho substantially gave the lie to.
the card Of Hamilton and Hoskins of
the proceeding July, together with
the false certificates OF tCatchings, Ad-
ans and McQuistou, and tells the
legislature that the lessees did not
settle their Indebtedness in 1884, in
December Of that year, as claimed in
their card, but made said settlement
December 2lst, 1855, five months after
their false statement had been pub
lished, and he reaped the benefit. llo
also showed in his biennial message
ofJanuary, 1886, that no settlement
had been made for the $50, ,42O due for
1885, and no settlement for that year
or the year 1886 has been made since,
making the amount now due the State
by the Iessees $77,s4O. Not only have
they failed to pay this blood-money,
but they are now trying to defraud
the State out of 1t altogether on tech
nicalities, and the suit SO long insti-
tuted by the Attorney General on
their bond is dragging along in the
court.
But this IL not all Of the penitentia-
ry rottenness. The Penitentiary
Standing Committee Of the Senate In
1885, Of which Senator Boone was
chairman, showed that so far as the
lessees having settled everything up
TO December, 1884, as claimed in their
card denouncing Fairman, the settle.
ment that was made for that year In
December, 1885, embraced unfinished
contracts for thousands Of dollars. In
other words, that the lessees settled
IN December, 1885, for what they were
que on their lease for 1884, and In that
settlement got credits for work that
hadn't been completed when the Leg
isIature was In session in 1885, and
3
some Of the work was not even be-
gun. And this IL not all. The same
committee, and another special com
nittee Of the Senate, showed that the
contracts on which the iessees had
obtained credits In ther settlement
with the State, and which contracts
nad been approved by the Governor,
embraced ovsr-chafses, exceeding
sso,0oo masking total Of about 500, 900
.nltogsthstlthis psnitentlary ring has
defronded NJ State out Of instead Of
aSo' = q 200 - w hrut put II. \,
These Are facts that have never
been told ~ tho Brandon Republi-
ican. the vicksbnrg Herald, the
!ackson Clarion, The Grenada Sem
V{10V W ~ - NJ = faW